fuel consumption

[linkavitch]

i plan on sailing from florida all along central america this summer.
im wondering how much fuel you guys think a 28-32fter with a 10-15 hp will consume? what would be a monthly average amount of
$ i should put away for fuel?


thanks

[Pblais]

I don't know that you can come up with an average. Cruisers anchor far more than they cruise and hopefully sail more than than motor. The bigger issue is if you will be using an engine to recharge the batteries. You may find you use more fuel for that over a week than you do motoring about. Venezuela still has about the cheapest fuel on the planet. Where you actually buy it may have vastly different costs. Your ability to carry fuel also will play into the cost.

[nautical62]

Nissan 2-stroke and 4-stroke fuel consumption guidelines:

Nissan Marine Outboards - Authorized Distributor Offering Boat Motor Products, Technical Information, & Dealer Locations for the U.S. & Canada."

My preliminary findings with a 20HP Yanmar diesel on my 30 ft. sailboat are that it burns about 1/2 gallon per hour at 2200 RPMs which drives that boat at just over 5 knots in calm water.

Figure the minimum and maximum you think you will be likely to run the engine and multiply buy the applicable above and you may have a ball park figure. As Paul indicated above, many cruisers also run their engine at anchor to charge their batteries. When I have used diesels with no wind or solar energy, I count on about 1.5 hours per day on the engine for charging purposes. Your needs will depend on your electrical demand and whether or not you have additional charging sources.

When I charter diesel boats in the 32-35 foot range that have no charging other than the inboard, I have never yet gone through 15 gallons in two weeks, but realize that's moving every day regardless of weather. As a longer-term cruiser, depending on your style and circumstances, you may be motoring 24/7 at times or sitting at anchor much more.

I hope these number at least give you a ball park starting point.

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by nautical62

... My preliminary findings with a 20HP Yanmar diesel on my 30 ft. sailboat are that it burns about 1/2 gallon per hour at 2200 RPMs which drives that boat at just over 5 knots in calm water...
... As Paul indicated above, many cruisers also run their engine at anchor to charge their batteries. When I have used diesels with no wind or solar energy, I count on about 1.5 hours per day on the engine for charging purposes...

My experience (13HP Yanmar on C&C29) jives with nautical’s results - “about” 10nm/gal.
I don’t recommend using your prime diesel for battery charging at anchor.

[linkavitch]

thanks everyone. i really appreciate the advice. im somewhat new to sailing and can't wait until iam on my journey.

these forums on this website kick butt!

[David M]

You never stated if you have solar cells or a wind generator. I would at least get some solar cells for the lower latitudes. These of course will reduce your fuel consumption.

[Exocet]

I agree with all comments, especially about getting a second source of charging the batteries, wether it be solar, wind, or some other. A lot of power can be shut off on a boat, but you always need you're Radio, nav lights, and anchor lights, which have a way of bleeding the battery dry at the most in-appropriate time. Make sure you have at least two batteries, which are isolated from each other, and can be run one at a time or together.
My experince with engines have all been deisel and found that the one cylinder 8 Hp ran at 1 litre /hr, while a 2 cylinder 18 Hp ran at 2 litres/hr. And Yes, plan on running the motor for one & 1/2 hrs per 24 Hrs

[MarkJ]

May I just pop in a bit of thought.... I was forever doing fuel calculations before we bought this boat.


But now?


Nup.


Its not that big a deal. A deisel gives pretty good value for money in running moderatly (ie not fast!) and good on the low revs for charging.

You will be pretty happy

It 'seems' to give better 'value' for money than a car.

Dunno if this helps


Mark